Best Practices in Civic Education: Changes in … praxis to outcomes, we intend to provide evidence...

CIRCLE WORKING PAPER 57

AUGUST 2007

Amy K. Syvertsen*, Constance A. Flanagan, & Michael D. Stout

The Pennsylvania State University

* [email protected]

Best Practices in Civic Education:

Changes in Students’ Civic Outcomes

www.civicyouth.org

CIRCLE Working Paper 57: August 2007

2

Best Practices in Civic Education

www.civicyouth.org 3

CIRCLE Working Paper 57: August 2007 Best Practices in Civic Education

The power of civic education to elicit positive student outcomes has been empirically documented. However, the field is only now beginning to understand the causal processes that bring about these positive changes in young people. The Civic Mission of Schools report commissioned by the Carnegie Corporation of New York and CIRCLE (2003) lays out six “promising approaches” to civic education. These practices emphasize the need for instruction that is relevant to young people (i.e., links young people’s interests to political contexts), provides opportunities for practice, and that moves beyond rote learning praxis. A growing body of evidence suggests that these approaches to civic education yield positive, lasting outcomes in young people (see CIRCLE, 2007). For example, research has found that deliberative classroom discussions are positively associated with interest in politics, political knowledge, and feelings of political efficacy (Feldman, Pask, Romer, & Hall Jamieson, in press; McDevitt, Kiousis, Wu, Losch, & Ripley, 2003). The goal of this project is to examine the association between activities regularly used in civic education courses (e.g., staging a mock election) and their impact on key student outcomes. By linking classroom praxis to outcomes, we intend to provide evidence supporting best practices in civic education.

METHODOLOGY

The data used to the present study were gathered from two waves of surveys with 1,670 students ages 14-19 from 80 social studies classes in the United States. Classes were recruited from a pool of teachers throughout one mid-Atlantic state who had expressed interest in training in an election-based curriculum. Teachers and students completed a pre-test at the beginning of the semester (early to mid-September) and a post-test at the end (late-November to mid-December) leaving a 2.5 to 3.5 month lapse between the points of data collection over the course of which the national election occurred. The student and teacher survey instruments used at both time points consisted of a combination of open-ended and Likert-type items. Items on the student survey were counterbalanced to ensure that all questions had an equal chance of being answered. Questionnaires were distributed to students during a 45-minute class period at each occasion of measurement. The study was originally designed as a randomized evaluation of a civics curriculum called Student Voices in the Campaign (for additional information on the program evaluation, see Syvertsen, Flanagan, & Stout, 2007). The current study, however, does not evaluate that particular program. Rather, we look at a range of usual practices that social studies teachers report

Figure 1. Breakdown of sample by grade.

14%

25%61%

10th Grade11th Grade12th Grade

www.civicyouth.org


2




using and assess whether various practices had a demonstrable impact on targeted civic outcomes for students. The practices which we assess are common practices and activities that are regularly found in standard civic education curricula and classrooms.

PARTICIPANTS

In total 80 teachers and 1,670 students completed surveys at the beginning and end of the semester. The mean age of the students was 16.63 years (SD = .85). Students were in grades 10, 11, and 12. As illustrated in Figure 1, the majority of students were in the 12th grade, which research has shown to be the optimal grade for civic education (Niemi & Junn, 1998). Fifty percent of the students were female. The ethnic background of the participants was 92% European-, 6% African-, 3% Hispanic-, 3% Native-, and 2% Asian-American. An additional 2% of the participants identified as being of some other ethnicity. Note that percentages do not add up to 100% as several students indicated multiple ethnicities. These ethnic breakdowns reflect the overall student population in the school districts in the study. Adolescents’ socioeconomic status (SES) was calculated based on their reports of mother / female guardian’s highest educational level. Students reported that their mother / female guardian’s highest level of education was: high school or less (43%), technical or vocational training (7%), 2-year college degree (12%), 4-year college degree (24%), graduate degree (14%). Teachers in the sample had a wide-range of teaching experience with careers ranging from 2 months to 37 years (M ≈ 14 years; Mode = 5 years). Thirty-eight percent of the teachers were female. The majority of teachers described the class participating in this study as having mixed abilities (83%), while 16% were identified as AP/Gifted and 1% were considered remedial. Eight percent of the teachers indicated that the class in which this study took place was required to fulfill a graduation requirement.

MEASURES

Teachers reported (using a long list) on which practices they used in their classes over the course of the Fall 2004 semester. In order to match exposure to a specific activity with student outcomes, the teachers’ reports were related to the students’ reports of various civic outcomes. Rather than matching each individual activity with a specific student outcome, scales were created (i.e., like items were grouped to create a single measure). For example, teachers were asked four separate questions concerning whether the students in their class participated in field trips to Washington, DC, the state capitol, local government offices, and polling stations. Instead of testing whether a field trip to each unique locale made students more trusting of elected officials, field trips to all four locations were grouped into a single Field Trip measure which, in turn, was used to measure the impact of field trips on students’ trust for elected officials.

The research team created the instructional practice scales based on theory and the common underlying skill or disposition targeted by the activity. To get a score on each measure, the number of activities for which the teacher responded “yes” was summed. The various instructional practice scales fit under three broad categories which seek to enhance: Civic Skills

* Communication Skills* Democratic Deliberation* Critical Analysis of Political Information

Civic Engagement * Election Simulation* Electoral Engagement* Alternative Engagement

Awareness of Civic Issues and Concepts* Local Issues* Youth Issues* Civic Education Concepts* International Issues* Contested Issues* Current National Events.

These measures are described in more detail in Tables 1, 3, and 5 later in this report.

www.civicyouth.org


4




When there was an explicit hypothesis about the outcome of a specific activity, the activity was entered into the analysis independently. For example, if we thought – over and above all of the other field trips – that a trip to Washington would make students more likely to express interest in a political career, we tested the affect of a “field trip to Washington” independently from all of the other field trip locations.

The measures used to assess students’ civic outcomes have been discussed in detail in the CIRCLE Working Paper, Civic Measurement Models: Tapping Adolescents’ Civic Engagement (Flanagan, Syvertsen, & Stout, 2007). Readers are directed to this piece for detailed information on the psychometric properties (e.g., alpha coefficient, individual item factor loadings) and the specific items that make up each of the student outcome scales used in this report.

ANALYTIC STRATEGY

The participants in this study are nested within classrooms which implies that the students within each class may be more similar to one another than they are to students in other classes. Thus, it is important to analyze the data both for individual students and at the classroom level. In order to adjust for the nested nature of the data in this study, the results were analyzed using a multilevel regression model. The two levels are: student (level 1) and classroom (level 2). In addition to the control for students nested within classrooms, we have added another stringent test: In each analysis of a civic outcome at the end of the semester, we have controlled for that variable at the beginning of the semester. For example, to understand whether there was a gain in students’ sense of political voice over the semester, we controlled for the level of political voice they reported at the beginning of the semester. The analyses also control for students’ attention to the national election at pre-test, and their mother’s education. Prior attention to the national election (as measured at pre-test) was included as a covariate in this study to minimize the influence of pre-test differences in general political engagement

and interest. Similarly, mother’s education was included as a covariate to control for differences in civic interest and opportunities associated with parental education. The combination of teacher and student reports, the multilevel design, and inclusion of prior political interest and mother’s education as covariates reflect considerable rigor in the analyses reported in this paper. The results of these analyses can be used to inform civic education standards and practices. We have organized the results into four sections: (1) Civic Skill, (2) Civic Engagement, (3) Awareness of Civic Issues and Concepts, and (4) Specific Activities. Each section of the report includes a table outlining the instructional practices included in the measures, a graph summarizing the percentage of teachers who used each practice during the Fall 2004 semester, and a table summarizing the multilevel regressions. The results show whether a particular practice (as reported by the teacher) predicts change in students’ civic outcomes (as measured in the pre-/post-test student data). When interpreting the results of these analyses, it is important to keep in mind the relatively short interval of time between the two times of measurement. Further, in terms of generalizability, it is important to note that these data were collected during a semester when a national election campaign was taking place. Thus, it is unclear whether these same results can be generalized to other semesters (with or without an election).

www.civicyouth.org


4




CIVIC SKILLS Application exercises provide young people with opportunities to practice and hone their civic skills. Three measures – described in Table 1 – were created to assess the extent to which teachers engage their students in skill building activities. Figure 2 illustrates the percentage of teachers who reported using each of the activities. Note that the majority of teachers reported doing most of the activities included in the Democratic Deliberation and Critical Analysis scales.

TABLE 1. CIVIC SKILLS MEASURES.

Civic Skills Measures

Stem: Did students in this class…

Communication

Skills

write a paper on a political issue?

learn how to plan and carry out a survey of community residents and/or other students in their school?

write a letter (mock or real) to the editor of a newspaper?

write a letter (mock or real) to a newly elected official to express their ideas/concerns?

give in-class oral presentations about an issue?

learn to support their opinions with facts?

Democratic

Deliberation

participate in a deliberative dialogue process?

learn how to actively listen to points of view that are different from their own?

reach a consensus on the political issues that are most important to the class as a whole?

learn how to find common ground with people who disagree with them?

learn how to work with other students with whom they have strong disagreements?

Critical Analyses of Political

Information

analyze political ads?

check the “facts” in political ads?

critique the messages in political ads?

evaluate a political candidate’s website?

learn to compare and contrast candidates’ positions?

learn about or discuss the difference between facts and opinions?

www.civicyouth.org


6




8

Figu

re 2

.P

erce

ntag

e of

teac

hers

who

use

d ci

vic

skill

bui

ldin

g ac

tiviti

es in

the

Fal

l 200

4 se

mes

ter.

Survey Community 28%

Op-Ed 24%

Oral Presentation 50%

Support Opinions w/ Facts 80%

Deliberative Dialogue 37%

Actively Listen 84%

Reach Consensus 73%

Find Common Ground 65%

Work w/ People w/ Whom You Disagree 66%

Facts v. Opinions 74%

Compare/Contrast Candidates' Positions 92%

Evaluate Candidates' Websites 45%

Critique Ads 75%

Analyze Ads 71%

Check Facts 63%

Paper on Political Issue 49%

Write Elected 19%

0%10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

C

omm

unic

atio

n Sk

ill D

evel

opm

ent

Dem

ocra

tic D

elib

erat

ion

C

ritic

al A

naly

ses

of P

oliti

cal I

nfor

mat

ion

www.civicyouth.org


6




9

Tab

le 2

. Sum

mar

y of

mul

tilev

el r

egre

ssio

n an

alys

es.

Lege

nd.

+ =

pos

itive

rel

atio

nshi

p, s

igni

fica

nt a

t p <

.10.

– =

neg

ativ

e re

latio

nshi

p, s

igni

fica

nt a

t p <

.10.

o =

rela

tions

hip

was

test

ed, n

ot s

igni

fica

nt a

t p <

.10.

Em

pty

Cel

l = r

elat

ions

hip

was

not

test

ed.

Not

es.

The

inst

ruct

iona

l pra

ctic

e m

easu

res

liste

d on

the

y-ax

is a

re b

ased

on

teac

hers

’ se

lf-r

epor

t, w

hile

the

outc

ome

mea

sure

s lis

ted

vert

ical

ly o

n th

e x-

axis

are

bas

ed o

n st

uden

ts’

self

-rep

ort.

The

hyp

othe

ses

test

ed in

this

rep

ort w

ere

deve

lope

d ba

sed

on th

eor y

and

prio

r re

sear

ch. A

ll of

the

mul

tilev

el r

egre

ssio

ns r

epor

ted

in th

is ta

ble

cont

rol f

or s

tude

nts’

pre

-tes

t sco

re o

n th

e m

easu

re o

f in

tere

st, s

tude

nts’

sel

f-re

port

ed in

tere

st in

the

natio

nal e

lect

ion

(as

mea

sure

d at

pre

-tes

t), a

nd th

eir

mot

her’

s ed

ucat

iona

l lev

el.

Stud

ent O

utco

mes

Political Voice

Civic Action

Accountability

Social Trust

Listen Even When I Disagree

Communication: Parent

Communication: Teacher

Communication: Friend

Communication: Classmate

Critical Consumer

Informed Vote

Unconditional Support

Trust Elected Officials

Traditional Media Outlets

Contemporary Media Outlets

Trust Media

Trust Ads

Trust Candidates’ Websites

C

omm

unic

atio

n

–o

o

D

emoc

ratic

Del

iber

atio

n

o

o o

+

+

+

TeacherPractices

C

ritic

al A

naly

sis

–

o o

o o

o o

o +

www.civicyouth.org


8




The results of the analyses are summarized in Table 2. Controlling for mother’s education and students’ prior interest in the election, we found that communication skill building activities negatively impacted students’ assessments of their abilities to share their opinions and mobilize others around issues that are important to them (i.e., political voice). While this result runs counter to our hypothesis that communication skill building should promote political voice, it is plausible that

over the course of the semester students became more realistic in their judgments of their ability and desire to voice their political opinions, thus, resulting in the negative relationship. Likewise, we found that critical analysis activities such as analyzing political ads negatively predicted students’ post-test assessments of their ability to critically analyze political information. It may be that, prior to receiving explicit instruction on how to evaluate the legitimacy of political information,

TABLE 3. CIVIC ENGAGEMENT MEASURES.

Civic Engagement Measures


Engagement with Local Issues

interview community members to identify what political issues are important to them?

have a visit from local candidates currently running for office?

Participate in a Field Trip

take a field trip to government offices in Washington, D.C.?

take a field trip to state capitol building?

take a field trip to local government offices?

take a field trip to local polling site?

Election Simulation

participate in a mock election?

participate in a mock debate?

create an ad about a political candidate or issue?

Alternative Forms of Engagement

discuss concrete ways other than voting that they can do to have a voice in political affairs?

Engagement in Electoral Politics

brainstorm ideas that could be done in the future to increase voter turnout?

examine and interpret data about voting patterns?

examine the results of the election and analyze voting patterns?

learn about or discuss candidates running for office in the state?

Stem: Did you do any of the following in the class that is participating in this study?

Acquaint students with the voting process (i.e., what to do inside the voting booth).

Invite a political candidate into your class to answer student questions.

Require students to watch a presidential debate.

Discuss the presidential debate(s) in class.

www.civicyouth.org


8




students over-rated their ability to critically analyze political information. In other words, the decline over the course of the semester in students’ self-assessments may reflect a higher standard and greater accuracy. We did find, however, that critical analysis activities positively predicted students’ trust of candidates’ websites. Political opinions, beliefs, and behaviors are shaped by the conversations young people have with others. Activities thought to promote students’ general democratic dispositions such as learning how to actively listen to diverse viewpoints resulted in gains in communication about political issues and current events with teachers, friends, and classmates. However, these practices did not spill over into students’ conversations with their parents.

CIVIC ENGAGEMENT

Teachers use a variety of practices to engage their students in thinking about and participating in electoral politics (see Table 3). Figure 3 presents the percent of teachers who reported doing each of the activities in these engagement measures. Table 4 summarizes the multilevel regressions. Teachers who indicated that they organized a mock election in their class were asked a series of follow-up questions about the types of activities they integrated into the mock election. The percent of teachers who did each activity as part of the mock election is presented in Figure 4.

www.civicyouth.org


10




12

Figu

re 3

.P

erce

ntag

e of

teac

hers

who

use

d ci

vic

enga

gem

ent a

ctiv

ities

in th

e F

all 2

004

sem

este

r.

Visit Candidates 26%

Mock Election 90%

Mock Debate 26%

Create an Ad 36%

Other than Voting How to Have a Voice 73%

Ideas to Increase Voter Turnout 71%

Discuss Presidential Debate in Class 99%

Watch Presidential Debate 76%

Candidates to Class 23%

Acquaint Students with Voting Process 90%

Candidates Running for State Office 76%

Interpret Voting Patterns 76%

Results of the Election and Voting Patterns 74%

Interviews in Community 40%

State Capital 0%

Local Polling Site 9%

Washington, D.C. 3%

Local Government Offices 1%

0%10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Eng

agem

ent w

/ L

ocal

Issu

es

Fie

ld T

rips

E

lect

ion

Sim

ulat

ion

Alte

rnat

ive

Eng

agem

ent

Eng

agem

ent i

n E

lect

oral

Pol

itics

www.civicyouth.org


10




13

Tab

le 4

. Sum

mar

y of

mul

tilev

el r

egre

ssio

n an

alys

es.

Lege

nd.

+ =

pos

itive

rel

atio

nshi

p, s

igni

fica

nt a

t p <

.10.

– =

nega

tive

rela

tions

hip,

sig

nifi

cant

at p

< .1

0.

o

= re

latio

nshi

p w

as te

sted

, not

sig

nifi

cant

at p

< .1

0.

E

mpt

y C

ell =

rel

atio

nshi

p w

as n

ot te

sted

.

Not

es.

The

inst

ruct

iona

l pra

ctic

e m

easu

res

liste

d on

the

y-ax

is a

re b

ased

on

teac

hers

’ se

lf-r

epor

t, w

hile

the

outc

ome

mea

sure

s lis

ted

vert

ical

ly o

n th

e x-

axis

are

bas

ed o

n st

uden

ts’

self

-rep

ort.

The

hyp

othe

ses

test

ed in

this

rep

ort w

ere

deve

lope

d ba

sed

on th

eory

and

pr

ior

rese

arch

. All

of th

e m

ultil

evel

reg

ress

ions

rep

orte

d in

this

tabl

e co

ntro

l for

stu

dent

s’ p

re-t

est s

core

on

the

mea

sure

of

inte

rest

, st

uden

ts’

self

-rep

orte

d in

tere

st in

the

natio

nal e

lect

ion

(as

mea

sure

d at

pre

-tes

t), a

nd th

eir

mot

her’

s ed

ucat

iona

l lev

el.

Stud

ent O

utco

mes

Accountability

Informed Vote



Important to be Active in Politics

Political Efficacy

Civic Knowledge

Vote Matters

Career in Politics

Fi

eld

Tri

ps

o

–

o o

o

E

lect

ion

Sim

ulat

ion

o

o o

o o

o

A

ltern

ativ

e E

ngag

emen

t o

+

TeacherPractices

E

lect

oral

Eng

agem

ent

o o

o o

o

o

–

www.civicyouth.org


12




14

Figure 4. Percent of teachers who conducted a mock election who also used additional activities to supplement the simulation.

26%

11%

3%4%

34%

26%

30%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

Make a CampaignAnnouncement

Schedule PublicAppearances

Seek Endorsements Hold a PressConference

Develop CampaignMaterials/Ads

Mock Debate Analyze theResults of the

Debate

www.civicyouth.org


12




Taken together the findings indicate that engagement with electoral politics and/or field trips to government offices have a negative impact on students’ sense of political efficacy and make them less likely to express interest in a career in politics. These activities provide students with opportunities to experience what it means to serve in an elected position and to see and hear first-hand accounts of the political process. Interestingly, we find that when teachers discussed concrete ways other than voting that students could have a voice in political affairs this practice yielded positive gains in

students’ self-reported political efficacy.

AWARENESS OF CIVIC ISSUES AND CONCEPTS The nature of the content taught in civics and social studies classes present teachers and students with opportunities to discuss local, national, and international affairs. The six measures described in Table 5 and Figure 6 were developed to gauge the types of topics educators are discussing with their students, and what impact these discussions have on student outcomes.

TABLE 5. AWARENESS OF CIVIC ISSUES AND CONCEPTS MEASURES.

Awareness Measures


Discussion of Local Issues

identify issues/problems that are important?

identify the strengths of their community?

discuss the future of their community?

discuss local issues in the community?

read the local newspaper and discuss articles in class?

gather and analyze information about a local or state issue?

Discussion of Youth Issues

discuss issues important to their generation?

interview other students to identify what political issues are important to them?

discuss why young people frequently do not vote?

Discussion of Contested Issues

learn about or discuss the civil rights movement?

learn about or discuss the Patriot Act?

learn about or discuss homeland security?

learn about or discuss the war in Iraq?

Discussion of Basic Civic

Education Concepts

learn about or discuss local government?

learn about or discuss the electoral college?

learn about or discuss the Constitution or the Bill of Rights?

learn about or discuss the three braches of government in the U.S.?

learn about or discuss their rights as citizens?

learn about or discuss their responsibilities as citizens?

learn about democracy as a form of government?

learn about democracy as a way of life?

learn about the founding principles of our nation?

learn about our history as a nation?

Discussion of International

Issues

discuss America’s role in the world?

discuss international issues?

learn about cultures outside the U.S.?

www.civicyouth.org


14




16

Figu

re 5

.Pe

rcen

tage

of t

each

ers

who

use

d aw

aren

ess

activ

ities

in th

e F

all 2

004

sem

este

r.

Important Issues in their Generation 91%

Interview Young People about Issues 51%

Discuss Why Young People Do Not Vote 94%

Civil Rights Movement 36%

The Patriot Act 50%

Rights as Citizens 81%

Responsibilities as Citizens 89%

Democracy as a Form of Government 90%

Democracy as a Way of Life 83%

Founding Principles of our Nation 80%

History as a Nation 73%

America's Role in the World 87%

International Issues 86%

Cultures Outside the US 39%

Domestic Issues in the US 93%

Read/Discuss Newspaper 78%

Discuss Community's Future 61%

Identify Community Strengths 59%

Gather/Analyze Local Issues 43%

Discuss Local Issues, 73%

Identify Community Issues 86%

War in Iraq 98%

Homeland Security 70%

Local Government 53%

Electoral College 90%

Constitution or the Bill of Rights 81%

Branches of Government 76%

0%10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Loca

l Iss

ues

You

th Is

sues

C

onte

sted

Issu

es

Bas

ic C

ivic

Edu

catio

n C

once

pts

Inte

rnat

iona

l Is

sues

Dom

estic

Is

sues

www.civicyouth.org


14




17

Tab

le 6

. Sum

mar

y of

mul

tilev

el r

egre

ssio

n an

alys

es.

Lege

nd.

+ =

pos

itive

rel

atio

nshi

p, s

igni

fica

nt a

t p <

.10.

– =

neg

ativ

e re

latio

nshi

p, s

igni

fica

nt a

t p <

.10.

o =

rel

atio

nshi

p w

as te

sted

, not

sig

nifi

cant

at p

< .1

0.

E

mpt

y C

ell =

rel

atio

nshi

p w

as n

ot te

sted

.

Not

es.

The

inst

ruct

iona

l pra

ctic

e m

easu

res

liste

d on

the

y-ax

is a

re b

ased

on

teac

hers

’ se

lf-r

epor

t, w

hile

the

outc

ome

mea

sure

s lis

ted

vert

ical

ly o

n th

e x-

axis

are

bas

ed o

n st

uden

ts’

self

-rep

ort.

The

hyp

othe

ses

test

ed in

this

rep

ort w

ere

deve

lope

d ba

sed

on th

eory

and

pr

ior

rese

arch

. All

of th

e m

ultil

evel

reg

ress

ions

rep

orte

d in

this

tabl

e co

ntro

l for

stu

dent

s’ p

re-t

est s

core

on

the

mea

sure

of

inte

rest

, st

uden

ts’

self

-rep

orte

d in

tere

st in

the

natio

nal e

lect

ion

(as

mea

sure

d at

pre

-tes

t), a

nd th

eir

mot

her’

s ed

ucat

iona

l lev

el.

Stud

ent O

utco

mes

Accountability

Communication: Parent

Communication: Teacher

Communication: Friend

Communication: Classmate


Value: Helping Others

Important to be Active in Politics

Vote Matters

Engagement in Community Issues

Political Efficacy

Concern about Future

Civic Knowledge

Unjust Treatment

Trust in the American Promise

L

ocal

Iss

ues

o

o

o o

Y

outh

Iss

ues

o

o

o o

C

ivic

Edu

catio

n C

once

pts

+

In

tern

atio

nal I

ssue

s

+

C

onte

sted

Iss

ues

o

o o

o o

o

+

o

Teacher Practices

C

urre

nt N

atio

nal E

vent

s o

o

www.civicyouth.org


16




The results of the multilevel regressions examining the impact of various awareness practices on student outcomes are summarized in Table 6. As expected, we found that discussion of basic civic education concepts was positively related to students’ civic knowledge (measured by their ability to correctly identify the governor and answer a series of basic questions about the electoral process). The results also reveal that discussion of international issues (e.g., America’s role in the world, other cultures) over the course of the semester made students more likely to express concerns about their economic future (e.g., jobs, ability to support a family). Discussion of hotly

contested issues such as the war in Iraq, the Patriot Act, civil rights, and homeland security positively predicted students’ concern about the unjust treatment of others. This latter finding is in line with the observations of Hibbing and Theiss-Morse (2002) that involving young people in discussions of contested issues may be the best way to engage their interest. Controversy invites deliberation thereby providing students with a forum to voice their opinions and, potentially, spark their interests. Notably, none of the hypothesized relationships between discussion of national events, youth issues, and local issues with student outcomes were significant.

19

Tab

le7.

Sum

mar

y of

mul

tilev

el r

egre

ssio

n an

alys

es.

Lege

nd.

+ =

pos

itive

rel

atio

nshi

p, s

igni

fica

nt a

t p <

.10.

– =

nega

tive

rela

tions

hip,

sig

nifi

cant

at p

< .1

0.

o

= re

latio

nshi

p w

as te

sted

, not

sig

nifi

cant

at p

< .1

0.

E

mpt

y C

ell =

rel

atio

nshi

p w

as n

ot te

sted

.

Not

es.

The

inst

ruct

iona

l pra

ctic

e m

easu

res

liste

d on

the

y-ax

is a

re b

ased

on

teac

hers

’ se

lf-r

epor

t, w

hile

the

outc

ome

mea

sure

s lis

ted

vert

ical

ly o

n th

e x-

axis

are

bas

ed o

n st

uden

ts’

self

-rep

ort.

The

hyp

othe

ses

test

ed in

this

rep

ort w

ere

deve

lope

d ba

sed

on th

eory

and

pri

or r

esea

rch.

All

of th

e m

ultil

evel

reg

ress

ions

re

port

ed in

this

tabl

e co

ntro

l for

stu

dent

s’ p

re-t

est s

core

on

the

mea

sure

of

inte

rest

, stu

dent

s’ s

elf-

repo

rted

inte

rest

in th

e na

tiona

l ele

ctio

n (a

s m

easu

red

at p

re-t

est)

, and

thei

r m

othe

r’s

educ

atio

nal l

evel

.

Stud

ent O

utco

mes

Accountability

Career in Government


Be Active in Politics

Informed Vote

Vote Matters

Serve County in the Military

SIG: Second Amendment / Firearms

SIG: Human Rights Groups

SIG: Ethnic Support Groups

Values: Race Relations

Can

dida

te V

isit

o

o

o

W

atch

Deb

ate

o

+

Id

entif

y Y

outh

Iss

ues

o o

o

o

C

ivil

Rig

hts

Mov

emen

t

o

o

Pa

trio

t Act

o

H

omel

and

Secu

rity

o

Teacher Practices

W

ar in

Ira

q

o o

www.civicyouth.org


16




SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES

To examine the impact of specific activities on student outcomes additional analyses were run (see Table 7). Only one relationship was significant: watching the presidential debate significantly and positively predicted students’ self-reported confidence that they could cast an informed vote in the election.

www.civicyouth.org


18


www.civicyouth.org


19


CIRCLE (The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement) promotes research on the civic and political engagement of Americans between the ages of 15 and 25. Although CIRCLE conducts and funds research, not practice, the projects that we support have practical implications for those who work to increase young people’s engagement in politics and civic life. CIRCLE is also a clearinghouse for relevant information and scholarship. CIRCLE was founded in 2001 with a generous grant from The Pew Charitable Trusts and is now also funded by Carnegie Corporation of New York. It is based in the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy.

REFERENCES

Carnegie Corporation of New York and CIRCLE: The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement. (2003). The civic mission of schools. New York: Authors.

Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE). (2007, April). Four years after the civic mission of schools report: A summary of the latest CIRCLE research on school-based civic learning. Around the CIRCLE Research & Practice, 4(3). Retrieved May 24, 2007, from http://www.civicyouth.org

Feldman, L., Pasek, J., Romer, D., & Hall Jamieson, K. (in press). Identifying best practices in civic education: Lessons from the Student Voices Program. American Journal of Education.

Flanagan, C. A., Syvertsen, A. K., & Stout, M. D. (2007). Civic measurement models: Tapping adolescents’ civic engagement (CIRCLE Working Paper, 55). College Park, MD: Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement.

Hibbing, J. R., & Theiss-Morse, E. (2002). Stealth democracy: Americans’ beliefs about how government should work. New York: Cambridge University Press.

McDevitt, M., Kiousis, S., Wu, X., Losch, M., & Ripley, T. (2003). The civic bonding of school and family: How Kids Voting students enliven the domestic sphere (CIRCLE Working Paper, 7). College Park, MD: Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement.

Niemi, R. G., & Junn, J. (1998). Civic education: What makes students learn. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.

Syvertsen, A. K., Flanagan, C. A., & Stout, M. D. (2007). Before the ballot box: A randomized trial of Student Voices. Manuscript under review.

www.civicyouth.org


18


www.civicyouth.org


19


CIRCLE (The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement) promotes research on the civic and political engagement of Americans between the ages of 15 and 25. Although CIRCLE conducts and funds research, not practice, the projects that we support have practical implications for those who work to increase young people’s engagement in politics and civic life. CIRCLE is also a clearinghouse for relevant information and scholarship. CIRCLE was founded in 2001 with a generous grant from The Pew Charitable Trusts and is now also funded by Carnegie Corporation of New York. It is based in the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy.

Best Practices in Civic Education: Changes in … praxis to outcomes, we intend to provide evidence...

Documents

Transcript of Best Practices in Civic Education: Changes in … praxis to outcomes, we intend to provide evidence...